Reborn as a concubine's daughter and entering a noble family: Xie Lang, don't be too seduc

I wish everything could be simpler.

She was just an ordinary woman who had a nightmare in which she and her husband were murdered on their wedding night. When she woke up, she was still the adopted daughter of Consort Qi, but because of her status as an orphan born out of wedlock in the Huo family, she had to marry someone of lower status when choosing a husband.

She was of average appearance with no advantages whatsoever; all she had learned was how to manage household finances.

Although Consort Qi treated her indifferently, she still chose a newly promoted minor official for her, for the sake of her own reputation. He was easy-going, had a good temperament, was somewhat literate, and his family was not poor.

The couple worked hard to make their little life together...

But looking back now, it all seems like a dream.

Hawthorne stared blankly at her reflection in the mirror, now fully groomed.

Today, she is going to the palace banquet with Xie Lin to fulfill the act between His Majesty and Consort Qi, and to put on a show for the world.

When Xie Lin came in, she was already dressed. He didn't ask her a single question about what happened yesterday...

But it's unclear whether he said anything to Xie Shu.

Huo Sanghua had only heard Wu Tong say that the fourth daughter of the Nie family left in tears yesterday, and that the Duchess of Maoguo was still trying to persuade her. The old lady Xie sent Li Mama to chase after her and plead with the Duchess of Maoguo at the door, but the Duchess of Maoguo left without looking back.

Before nightfall, everyone in the Marquis's mansion knew about it.

Wutong and the people in this courtyard only knew that yesterday, the second young master carried the second mistress back, saying that the second mistress had accidentally fallen and dirtied her clothes.

They then prepared water for the second mistress to bathe and changed her into clean clothes.

However, the second wife was not in a good mood yesterday and went to bed without eating anything later in the evening.

I originally thought that the second wife had just fallen and gotten her clothes dirty, and was therefore unhappy.

But then someone mentioned that the second madam was also present when the eldest son and the Nie family girl had a falling out.

Wutong and the others were puzzled, wondering what had happened.

"Are you all packed? We should head out now." Xie Lin's tone sounded normal.

Wutong glanced at Yanliu discreetly, as if asking her something in a low voice, only to be glared at by Yanliu.

Today, Granny Guo and Yanliu will accompany Huo Sanghua to the palace. They have already dressed up and are following the carriage as it heads into the palace.

Xie Lin deliberately didn't ride a horse, but instead accompanied Huo Sanghua in a carriage. When he caught a glimpse of Huo Sanghua's expression, he reached out and took her hand.

"Don't worry, it'll be okay."

Huo Sanghua looked over a little late, only to see Xie Lin's concerned gaze, and slowly lowered her head again.

She didn't know how to bring it up with Xie Lin, nor did she understand the meaning behind what he had said to her.

When the carriage arrived at the palace gate, Xie Lin got off first, then reached out to help Huo Sanghua. He glanced around unintentionally and immediately felt something was strange.

The palace guards today are different from usual; there's something indescribable about them.

Huo Sanghua's feet were already on the ground, and he didn't even realize what was happening. Sensing Xie Lin's unusual behavior, Huo Sanghua looked at him with a puzzled expression. "What's wrong?"

“Something seems... off,” Xie Lin said. “The palace guards seem unusually tight today.”

"Isn't that a good thing?" Hawthorne asked. Wouldn't it be a good thing to send more Imperial Guards to guard the palace?

Why does Xie Lin look a little nervous?

“If it were just because we’re going to the palace for a banquet, there would be no need for this. Usually, there are only about a hundred Imperial Guards on duty here in shifts, but today there are three or four hundred of them. Look—” He glanced to the side and gestured for Sang Hua to look, “There’s almost no room left over there. If the palace hadn’t known in advance what was going to happen, they wouldn’t have made these arrangements.”

Huo Sanghua looked in the direction Xie Lin indicated and indeed it was different from usual.

In the past, the Imperial Guards stationed in front of the palace gates were spaced at the same distance from each other, but today, the distance between them is much narrower than before, with some being about half an arm's width apart and others shoulder to shoulder.

There are indeed quite a few more people.

"Wait, stay close to me, don't wander off," Xie Lin reminded her.

We don't know what will happen today, but since the palace has already made arrangements, they must have gotten wind of it.

There will likely be some unexpected incidents.

After saying that, he slightly raised his arm.

"What are you doing?" Hawthorne was confused; who knew what he meant?

"If anything happens, just hold my arm and follow behind me." Xie Lin smiled casually, confident that with his abilities, getting Huo Sanghua out of danger... wouldn't be a problem.

Therefore, he wanted Hawthorne to hold his arm.

Huo Sanghua was puzzled for a while, until she was sure Xie Lin had no other intentions. In order to save her own life, she hesitantly reached out and took Xie Lin's arm... "Are you sure you can protect me?"

Xie Lin sensed a deep distrust in Huo Sanghua's words, so he gently took her hand and pulled her up slightly as they walked through the palace gates together.

"What, are you afraid I can't protect you? Then why did you marry me in the first place?"

“You… ……” Huo Sanghua was outmaneuvered and could only glare at him angrily.

It wouldn't be appropriate to let go of Xie Lin's hand in front of so many eyes in the palace, lest people notice their "discord."

He lowered his voice even further, "Don't push your luck."

Xie Lin chuckled mischievously, "...I can't say for sure about other things, but protecting you is no problem. Don't worry, no matter what happens today, I'll keep you safe and sound."

Hearing his promise, Hawthorne's worried expression softened.

I don't know where the trust came from, but I suddenly felt that he was much more trustworthy.

Today's family banquet was held in a side hall of Yuyang Palace. Consort Qi appeared looking unwell and sat to the side of His Majesty.

It looks like she hasn't fully recovered from a serious illness; her complexion is still very poor...

"Consort Qi is slightly unwell, but even so, she is reluctant to not see the Second Madam." While pouring wine for His Majesty, Eunuch Cai mentioned this to the people at the table, and also gave Consort Qi a friendly look.

Anyone who saw this would be doing Consort Qi a favor.

"Yes, Sanghua grew up under Consort Qi's care. Consort Qi has always treated Sanghua as her own daughter. It's only natural that a mother would fall seriously ill after her daughter got married," His Majesty said. "Sanghua, you should come back to the palace often to visit and spend more time with Consort Qi."

For the first part, Consort Qi was able to cooperate and pretend to be a mother with a deep affection for her daughter.

But when he heard His Majesty invite Hawthorne to "come back to the palace often," his face immediately darkened, and he looked at His Majesty warily.

Seemingly understanding His Majesty's thoughts, realizing that His Majesty was using this opportunity to invite Hawthorne—

"Your Majesty is truly unreasonable. Sanghua is already a married daughter, and now she is the wife of Xie Erlang. Even if I miss Sanghua dearly, I cannot break the rules... If a married daughter frequently returns to her parents' home, the Xie family will think she lacks manners!"

Consort Qi's words hit His Majesty's weak points.

His Majesty's expression stiffened for a moment. He did not respond, but simply raised his cup and drank, avoiding Consort Qi's gaze.

When Huo Sanghua had a chance to glance at the people at the table, he saw that it was a "family banquet hosted by His Majesty," and indeed, all the guests were his own "children."